Projects that best reflect the strong points of the Travertino Romano Industry.
The new National Commercial Bank is the highest building in the Saudi Arabian kingdom. The building is completely clad in slabs of un-stuccoed polished classic Travertino Romano alternating between 149x149cm and 274x149 cm pieces. The slabs are 6.5cm thick and weigh approximately between 300 and 600 kg each. The clad exterior covers approximately 26,000 m2.
All the 24 floors of the lift area are clad in 3cm thick slabs of polished classic Travertino Romano (covering approximately 3,200 m2). The floor of the Bank is again clad in 6.5cm travertine (covering approximately 2,400 m2). The lift area flooring is in green S. Denis marble (approx. 3,200 m2) while the floor in the Bank is patterned in white Pentelicon marble and S. Denis marble and covers approximately 1,400 m2). The flooring on the presidential floor (24th floor) is Arabic in design and made in white Pentelicon marble (approx. 1,600 m2).
The large dividing walls are in various coloured 8cm thick marble. The 23rd floor flooring is in pure black granite (approx. 3,000 m2). The project is completed by a series of fountains, stairways and counter tops in white Pentelicon marble; travertine flower vases; green S. Denis marble counters. All the exterior cladding was laid using the rainscreen system and fixed with stainless steel cramps.
The interior cladding was laid using the traditional system, with cramps and mortar. All the various travertine and marble works were completed over seventeen months. The material assembled covers a total surface area of more than 50,000m2. The company commissioned with the works started amassing the blocks around two years prior in order to guarantee the homogeneity of the material. Work started on the Travertino Romano exterior in November 1982 and was completed in July 1983.
It took around eight and a half months to lay the cladding, and around five months to lay the exterior flooring. Italian specialists and technicians were employed for the job and the project was awarded first prize in the Marble Architectural Awards 1966 - Middle East and North Africa.
